OAKLAND -- A convicted drug dealer pleaded not guilty Monday to a murder charge stemming from the fatal beating of a 62-year-old man in West Oakland two years ago.

Nathaniel Lloyd Davis, 33, of Oakland is also charged with use of a deadly weapon for allegedly using a bottle to kill Eddie Jones, also of Oakland, in the 1100 block of Center Street at about 10:50 p.m. on Jan. 23, 2011.

The case remained unsolved for nearly two years but authorities finally developed enough information to arrest Davis in Oakland on Dec. 27 and he was formally charged several days later.

Davis is scheduled to return to Alameda County Superior Court on March 18 for a pretrial hearing.

Davis is also charged with having three prior felony convictions, which could add to his state prison term if he's convicted of the allegation that he murdered Jones.

Prosecutors allege that he was convicted of selling drugs in Alameda County in 1999 and 2006 and of selling drugs in San Francisco in 2008.